Ampul for substances easily decomposable in solutions



M. HAHN AMPUL FOR SUBSTANCES EASILY DECOMPOSABLE IN SOLUTIONS Filed June'l5, 1925 072200121901 Nam tin Ha /)1;

Patented 13, 192 6. J

- UNITED STATES 1,592,632 PATENT OFFICE.

MARTI IIN HAHN, 0F BERLIN, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR TO M. WOELM A. G. 01? SPANGEN- BERG, GERMANY.

AMPUL FOR SUBSTANCES EASILY DECOMPOSABLE IN SOLUTIONS.

Application filed June 15, 1925. Serial No. 37,374, and in Germany June 21, 1924.

By my application Serial No. 628,391, filed March 28, 1923, a storage vessel for easily soluble substances is known in which the solvent and the substance to be dissolved are stored in two separate compartments connected by a capillary tube. The capillary tube is closed by astopper of paraffin or a mixture of 'paraflin with wax and resin. This closure has not proved satisfactory in use particularly in hot climates. Its melting point should not be so high that it cannot be removedfrom the capillary tube without very strong heating. If, however, a mixture of sufficiently low melting point is used then it will be partly softened by the tem eratures of the tropics and then attacked y the solution in one compartment, so that after a time it is no longer entirely impenetrable.

I have found among easily melted metal alloys, in articular in the known Woods metal, which consists of bismuth, cadmium, tin and lead, and which melts at about 65, 8. material without these disadvantages. It does not soften in the tropics, it is in no way affected by water, it remains impenetrable after a long time and when molten is not viscous.

This alloy is not able to resist the action of some acids and of the halogens. To protect it against their action the metal stopper is thinly coated with paraffin, caoutchouc or some other easily melted material which in this case does not form a closure for the capillary tube but only acts as a separating partition between the easily melted metal and the said fluidif present.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a sectional view of both the known form of ampule and the form according to the present invention, the plug f in the firmer case being as above explained of parafiin and wax, and in the latter a fusible metal alloy. Figure 2 is a view of the ampule filter insertion of the metal plug and before When the known double am ule is used, then the lower container 0 (see igure 1) is dipped in a vessel with warm water far enough to immerse and heat the capillary tube 6 and the easily melted paraflin mixture situated therein. The expanded air in c then drives" the softened stopper 7 upwards so that the fluid d can .flow from a into a.

With this arrangement, however, there are various disadvantages. It is firstly necessary to heat the whole container 0 to a temperature above 50 which may injure certain substances which easily coagulate or decompose on heating.

Secondly it frequently happens that with a single heating the whole quantity of fluid d from a does not pass on cooling into the compartment 0 because the pressure differ ence between the two containers is too small. The container 0 must then be dipped again into a warm bath and then cooled again so as to allow the remainder of the fluid d to pass into 0.

According to the present invention these difficulties are avoided in that in filling the ampule avacuum is made in 0. To melt the stopper f of easily melted material it is simply necessary to heat it with a small flame, whereupon the whole of the fluid in a is caused to flow into the evacuated chamber c with .a speed proportional to'the natural air pressure existing in a.

The advantages of this new arrangement are obvious. The deleterious heating, once or more than once, of the substance g is avoided, and there is no need for a vessel of 'warm water to cause the materials contained in the two tubes to reach one another. The

flame of a match is quite sufficient. Finally it is also advantageous to store the solid substance or SOllltJOll g in an evacuated chamber since many unstable substances for which the double ampule is used are changed by even a small quantity of oxygen.

The double tube is preferably filled, by proceeding in the following manner:

The easily melted metal is first put into a double tube (seeFigure 2) open at both ends and provided with a funnel h and the substance g is then inserted after which the chamber 0 is evacuated and sealed. The fluid d is next poured in through the funnel k which is then sealed up. Naturally, the fluid can be first passed into the container a, this container closed, and then,

after inserting g, 0 can be evacuated and tion d into the tube a, which is sealed and the solution 9 put into the tube 0 which is then in its turn evacuated and sealed. In

this case the lower opening of a is made so wide that the fluid can be poured in easily.

The tube 'so filled is particularly useful for the tropics and also for keeping sterile solutions of dry lymph, dry serums and medical substances for intravenous injections against bacterial diseases. 4

I claim 1. In a known sealed glass container comprising two individual ampules and a connecting capillary glass tube closed by an easily fusible material, the closure by an easily melted metal and a pressure difference between the compartments by evacu-v ation of the one, into which the solution is to pass on melting of the metal stoppen 2. In a known sealed glass container comprising two lndivldual ampules and a connecting capillary glass tube closed by an easily fusible material, the closure by an easily melted metal, the protection of the metal stopper by a chemically inert easily melted substance such as paraflin, caoutcliouc or the like on one or both sides of the metal stopper and a pressure diflerence between the compartments by evacuation of the one, into which the solution is to pass on melting of the metal stopper.

3. A method of filling the double ampule with capillary glass tube. in which the capillary tube of the glass container which has two extensions at first open at both ends is closed by an easily melted metal. after which the two containers filled with the substances are sealed in a known manner. one being previously evacuated.

'In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

- MARTIN HAHN. 

